Gender Policy in Contemporary Iran: The Role of State in Changing the Status and Rights of Women (1891–2013)

Gender policy in contemporary Iran has experienced many fluctuations, but it has generally brought about significant changes in the status of women. The question of this article is focused on political factors, especially the role of state, in these changes. Using a historical–comparative method, the present research shows that gender policy in contemporary Iran was influenced by three variables: the strength of the women’s movement, the state’s tendencies, and other positions of social forces. Moreover, gender policy has emerged under three distinct paradigms. First, the conservative paradigm, which stemmed from the weakness of the women’s movement concomitant with the traditionalist state as well as the resistance of conservative forces, has not succeeded to make considerable changes to the status of women. This paradigm can be seen in the years preceding the constitutional movement (1891–1905), during 1941–1951 (the 1320s Solar Hijri), and in some periods following the Islamic Revolution (1981–1988). The second paradigm, called authoritarian reform, resulted from the weakness of the women’s movement concomitant with the authoritarian state as well as the diminished resistance of conservative forces. This paradigm, seen in the years 1921–1941 and 1963–1978, caused significant changes in the legal status of women. Not accompanied by the participation of women, these changes could not firmly entrench themselves and at times relapsed into the previous stage. Third, the paradigm of democratic reform resulted from the women’s movement concomitant with the reformist state as well as the balance between modern and traditional social forces. This paradigm emerged in the early years following the constitutional movement and in the two post-Revolutionary periods known as construction and reformist, introducing relatively profound and lasting changes to the status of women.